My little alien scientist
I am less frustrated and have more patience with my toddler when I think of him as a pint-sized alien scientist dropped off on Earth to do a lifelong ethnographic study of the human race. He doesn't speak the language, doesn't know the laws of physics, and is unfamiliar with our social customs. He's just trying to figure out how it all works.
*Alert: This post is long, and I'm too tired right now to look up the LJ-cut code. You've been forewarned!*
In the last few weeks my not-quite-two-year-old has been busting out with some really funny stuff. I love the purely uncomplicated way his mind works. For example, in the social customs arena: he takes food from my hand, places it in his mouth, decides he doesn't like it. The appropriate response? Calmly remove it from his mouth and politely return it to the hand that gave it to him, of course!
Then there's animal science. There are basically three categories: Duck (anything with wings, including the angel atop the Christmas tree); Awoah (anything with four legs is branded with the name of our dog, Arrow); and Hoo-hoo, Ha-ha (monkey).
Lately he's been transferring his knowledge between people and objects. For example, a couple of days ago I was telling his grandmother that his word for kiss is "mm-mah" (as in blowing a kiss, "mwah!"). He made the rounds of the room kissing all of us, "mm-mah, Mama. Mm-mah, Dada." Then he added, "mm-mah, bai (bike)" and "mm-mah, ho-hee (horsey)", bending down to kiss his toys! Huh?!
This morning he plunked down against the dog, who he adores, and began his usual zealous ministrations. "Pet Arrow niiiiicely," I reminded him, as always, but especially since she is recovering from surgery. He responded with a few gentle strokes, then consciously reached out to his big wheel with his other hand, petting it and intoning, "naiiiii bai" (niiiiice bike). Until his hand met the dirty wheel and he changed his tune, "bai, yuck!"
This evening at bedtime he pet his dad's knee as a surrogate for Arrow, who is not allowed in his room at bedtime, saying, "Nai-nai, Awoah" (night-night, Arrow). I laughed, and went down the list of those he usually says good night to. "Okay, pet Daddy nicely." He stroked Scott's knee. "Pet Thaniel nicely." He rubbed his side. "Pet Mama nicely." He rubbed somewhere above my stomach and below my chest, "nai-nai, mok" (night-night, milk)! I just about fell off the bed laughing! (Whenever he asks to nurse at bedtime, I tell him that mama-milks went night-night.)
He's popping out with new words almost daily now, and is finally willing (able?) to imitate sounds when we ask. Yesterday my mom asked him to say, "Mahalkita, Mama" ("I love you" in Tagalog), and he immediately piped, "mal-kee-ta, Mama!" In the last day or two he's also surprised me with his first word and sign for something abstract, an emotion, happy ("hoppy"). He's been in pretty good spirits considering he's been home with a fever for the last two days. Tonight he flopped on his bed and spontaneously declared, "hoppy! hoppy!", beating his chest in an approximation of the sign. I responded by singing "if you're happy and you know it" and he was so delighted that we had to sing it repeatedly, making up things to do to show you're happy. His level of comprehension has seemed to explode in the last couple of weeks, or else I've suddenly just noticed it; he understood and immediately responded to directions like, "kiss your daddy" and "hug your bear".
The one thing I'm not sure he understands is his own name. He never responds when I call his name, not by looking up, turning his head, or anything. Yet if I give him a direction with his name (like "pet Thaniel nicely" above), he knows who I'm talking about. I'm not sure what to make of that.
There are dozens more of these little funnies that I keep meaning to document and never getting around to. I'm never going to get them all down right or perfectly, so I thought I'd share these few while they're fresh. :)
*Alert: This post is long, and I'm too tired right now to look up the LJ-cut code. You've been forewarned!*
In the last few weeks my not-quite-two-year-old has been busting out with some really funny stuff. I love the purely uncomplicated way his mind works. For example, in the social customs arena: he takes food from my hand, places it in his mouth, decides he doesn't like it. The appropriate response? Calmly remove it from his mouth and politely return it to the hand that gave it to him, of course!
Then there's animal science. There are basically three categories: Duck (anything with wings, including the angel atop the Christmas tree); Awoah (anything with four legs is branded with the name of our dog, Arrow); and Hoo-hoo, Ha-ha (monkey).
Lately he's been transferring his knowledge between people and objects. For example, a couple of days ago I was telling his grandmother that his word for kiss is "mm-mah" (as in blowing a kiss, "mwah!"). He made the rounds of the room kissing all of us, "mm-mah, Mama. Mm-mah, Dada." Then he added, "mm-mah, bai (bike)" and "mm-mah, ho-hee (horsey)", bending down to kiss his toys! Huh?!
This morning he plunked down against the dog, who he adores, and began his usual zealous ministrations. "Pet Arrow niiiiicely," I reminded him, as always, but especially since she is recovering from surgery. He responded with a few gentle strokes, then consciously reached out to his big wheel with his other hand, petting it and intoning, "naiiiii bai" (niiiiice bike). Until his hand met the dirty wheel and he changed his tune, "bai, yuck!"
This evening at bedtime he pet his dad's knee as a surrogate for Arrow, who is not allowed in his room at bedtime, saying, "Nai-nai, Awoah" (night-night, Arrow). I laughed, and went down the list of those he usually says good night to. "Okay, pet Daddy nicely." He stroked Scott's knee. "Pet Thaniel nicely." He rubbed his side. "Pet Mama nicely." He rubbed somewhere above my stomach and below my chest, "nai-nai, mok" (night-night, milk)! I just about fell off the bed laughing! (Whenever he asks to nurse at bedtime, I tell him that mama-milks went night-night.)
He's popping out with new words almost daily now, and is finally willing (able?) to imitate sounds when we ask. Yesterday my mom asked him to say, "Mahalkita, Mama" ("I love you" in Tagalog), and he immediately piped, "mal-kee-ta, Mama!" In the last day or two he's also surprised me with his first word and sign for something abstract, an emotion, happy ("hoppy"). He's been in pretty good spirits considering he's been home with a fever for the last two days. Tonight he flopped on his bed and spontaneously declared, "hoppy! hoppy!", beating his chest in an approximation of the sign. I responded by singing "if you're happy and you know it" and he was so delighted that we had to sing it repeatedly, making up things to do to show you're happy. His level of comprehension has seemed to explode in the last couple of weeks, or else I've suddenly just noticed it; he understood and immediately responded to directions like, "kiss your daddy" and "hug your bear".
The one thing I'm not sure he understands is his own name. He never responds when I call his name, not by looking up, turning his head, or anything. Yet if I give him a direction with his name (like "pet Thaniel nicely" above), he knows who I'm talking about. I'm not sure what to make of that.
There are dozens more of these little funnies that I keep meaning to document and never getting around to. I'm never going to get them all down right or perfectly, so I thought I'd share these few while they're fresh. :)